Herbert Garrison
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Mr. Herbert Garrison is a fictional character and occasional
antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the main enemy or rival of the protagonist and is often depicted as a villain.animated television series An animated series, or a cartoon series, is a set of Animation, animated films with a common title, usually related to one another. These episodes typically share the same main heroes, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series ...
''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...
'', created by
Matt Stone Matthew Richard Stone (born May 26, 1971) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and ''The Book of Mormon (musical), The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his cre ...
and
Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, and musician. He is best known for co-creating ''South Park'' (1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative part ...
(who also voices the character). Garrison first appeared in ''South Park''s
pilot episode A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...
, "
Cartman Gets an Anal Probe "Cartman Gets an Anal Probe" is the series premiere of the American animated television series ''South Park''. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 13, 1997. The episode introduces child protagonists Eric Cartman, ...
", which aired on August 13, 1997. Garrison is primarily employed as a teacher at South Park Elementary, originally of the main characters' third grade class, and currently, their fourth-grade class. In the earlier seasons, Garrison uses a hand puppet named Mr. Hat as a teaching resource; the puppet occasionally shows signs of sentience and has been suggested to be a manifestation of Garrison's own latent
homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
feelings. Mr. Hat was largely retired by the sixth season. Garrison was partially inspired by Parker's kindergarten teacher, who also used a puppet named Mr. Hat, as well as a British literature professor Parker had at the
University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...
. Garrison is characterized as particularly
cynical Cynicism is an attitude characterized by a general distrust of the motives of others. A cynic may have a general lack of faith or hope in people motivated by ambition, desire, greed, gratification, materialism, goals, and opinions that a cynic p ...
, especially in comparison with the other adults in South Park, and he is one of the few characters on ''South Park'' to have broken the
fourth wall The fourth wall is a performance dramatic convention, convention in which an invisible, imaginary wall separates actors from the audience. While the audience can see through this "wall", the convention assumes the actors act as if they cannot. ...
. In the ninth season premiere, " Mr. Garrison's Fancy New Vagina", Garrison
comes out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
as a
trans woman A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...
, undergoes a
sex change operation Gender-affirming surgery (GAS) is a surgical procedure, or series of procedures, that alters a person's physical appearance and sexual characteristics to resemble those associated with their gender identity. The phrase is most often associated ...
and renames herself Janet Garrison. In the twelfth season episode " Eek, a Penis!", a disillusioned Garrison undergoes another sex change operation to
detransition Detransition is the cessation or reversal of a transgender identification or of gender transition, temporarily or permanently, through social, legal, and/or medical means. The term is distinct from the concept of 'regret', and the decision may ...
. During the twentieth season, Garrison is elected
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
and serves in the role until the twenty–fourth season. He is never referred to by name during this period, and is exclusively referred to as "the President". Parker has stated that Garrison has become one of the most complex characters on ''South Park'', particularly due to his relationship with Mr. Hat and his sexuality and gender issues. He describes Garrison as "the
soap opera A soap opera (also called a daytime drama or soap) is a genre of a long-running radio or television Serial (radio and television), serial, frequently characterized by melodrama, ensemble casts, and sentimentality. The term ''soap opera'' originat ...
element to the whole series. ehas a real story going on."


Role in ''South Park''

In ''South Park'', Garrison was raised in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...
and claims to have a master's degree in
mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines and mechanism (engineering), mechanisms that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and engineering mathematics, mathematics principl ...
from Denver Community College, as depicted in "
The Entity ''The Entity'' is a 1982 American supernatural horror film directed by Sidney J. Furie, and starring Barbara Hershey, Ron Silver, David Labiosa, Maggie Blye, Jacqueline Brookes, and Alex Rocco. The film follows a single mother in Los Angel ...
". Garrison is characterized as being sexually confused, having had both heterosexual and same-sex relationships in addition to two sex reassignment surgeries. In many episodes, Garrison displays racist tendencies. In the episode "
Chef Goes Nanners "Chef Goes Nanners" is the seventh episode of the South Park season 4, fourth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 55th episode of the series overall. It is eighth in production order. "Chef Goes Nanners" originally ...
", Garrison's hand puppet, Mr. Hat, is a member of the local chapter of the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
, which Garrison resents, and he insists to
Chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...
that he wants nothing to do with it. However, in the later episode "
Here Comes the Neighborhood "Here Comes the Neighborhood" is the 12th episode of the South Park season 5, fifth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 77th episode of the series overall. "Here Comes the Neighborhood" originally aired in the United ...
", he leads an effort to run affluent residents–who are all
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
–out of town using Klan techniques, including burning crosses. Although the townsfolk at first claim that this is because of the "richers'" wealth, in his last line of the episode, Garrison's intentions are revealed to be indeed racially motivated. In the episode " An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig", he states that "genetic engineering erases all of God's mistakes, like German people". In multiple episodes, he expresses disdain for Mexican people, to the point of attempting to prolong the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
in order to keep his campaign promise to eradicate Mexicans, even if countless other people also died. In the first three seasons, Garrison teaches the third–grade class at South Park Elementary School. He was portrayed as a
closeted ''Closeted'' and ''in the closet'' are metaphors for LGBTQ people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior. This metaphor is associated and sometime ...
homosexual, of which he was ashamed. He pretends to have highly negative views on homosexuality in earlier episodes. Garrison usually uses a hand puppet named Mr. Hat, which he uses to emote more aggressively as well as to display his internal conflicts. It was suggested that Mr. Hat, and his temporary replacement Mr. Twig, were characters through which Garrison could express his repressed gay feelings. Though Garrison emphatically denies being gay, he acknowledges that Mr. Hat and Mr. Twig had homosexual fantasies. He eventually
comes out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
as gay in the episode " 4th Grade". It has been established that Garrison has had heterosexual relationships, including with
Liane Cartman Liane Cartman, formerly known as Carol Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated television series ''South Park''. She is the single mother of main character Eric, who raises him in the fictional town of South Park, Colorado. Liane is ...
. Possible same-sex relationships include
Stephen Stotch ''South Park'' is an American adult animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central cable television, television network. The ongoing narrative revolves around four boys, Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Kenn ...
in " Butters' Very Own Episode", and he sought a tryst with
Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...
in "
Cartman Joins NAMBLA "Cartman Joins NAMBLA" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 53rd episode of the series overall. Going by production order, it is the 5th episode of Season 4. It originally aired in ...
", in which Garrison solicited sex from Cartman, not knowing that he had contacted the latter online; Garrison was consequently arrested for this act and then temporarily dismissed from his teaching position. In his absence from teaching, Garrison wrote an erotic romance novel titled ''In the Valley of Penises'', which sold respectably before it won the Gay
Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...
and was deemed to be "the best work of
homoerotic Homoeroticism is sexual attraction between members of the same sex, including both male–male and female–female attraction. The concept differs from the concept of homosexuality: it refers specifically to the desire itself, which can be tempor ...
literature since ''
Huckleberry Finn Huckleberry "Huck" Finn is a fictional character created by Mark Twain who first appeared in the book ''The Adventures of Tom Sawyer'' (1876) and is the protagonist and narrator of its sequel, '' Adventures of Huckleberry Finn'' (1884). He is 12 ...
''". In the episodes following the release of his novel, Garrison has a nervous breakdown and flees South Park to become a
hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Chr ...
, where he eventually comes to terms with his gay identity. After this point, he is portrayed as openly embracing his homosexuality. He is rehired by South Park Elementary as a kindergarten teacher, as his previous position as the fourth grade teacher was held by Diane Choksondik. In the sixth season episode "
The Death Camp of Tolerance "The Death Camp of Tolerance" is the fourteenth episode of the South Park season 6, sixth season of the American animated television series ''South Park'', and the 93rd overall episode of the series. It originally aired on Comedy Central in the ...
", he was promoted to the fourth grade following Choksondik's death. However, when Garrison finds that he could sue the school for substantial compensation if he were discriminated against, he purposely attempts to be dismissed. To that end, he abandons his puppet counterpart in favor of a human assistant, Mr. Slave, Garrison's personal
BDSM BDSM is a variety of often Eroticism, erotic practices or Sexual roleplay, roleplaying involving Bondage (BDSM), bondage, Discipline (BDSM), discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given ...
slave and lover. The two proceed to perform several sexually explicit homosexual acts in front of Garrison's students. Garrison's plan was unsuccessful, and he was instead praised for his perceived bravery. The show has implied that Garrison has corprophilic tendencies in "
Proper Condom Use "Proper Condom Use" is the seventh episode of the fifth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 72nd episode of the series overall. "Proper Condom Use" originally aired in the United States on August 1, 2001 on Comedy C ...
", wherein the majority of sexual acts he taught to the kindergarten class involved feces or defecation. In that episode, Chef refers to Garrison as a "complete pervert". Despite having declared himself gay, Garrison continues to appear ashamed of it as a part of his continual emotional and psychological problems. In the season three finale, "
World Wide Recorder Concert "World Wide Recorder Concert" (also known as "The Brown Noise") is the seventeenth and final episode of the third season of the animated television series ''South Park'' and the 48th episode of the series overall. It was originally broadcast on ...
", he was portrayed as in despair over the fact that his father, Garrison Senior, had not sexually abused him when Garrison was young, believing that he did not love his son. After being repeatedly pressed by his son to have sex with him, Garrison Senior has
Kenny G Kenneth Bruce Gorelick (born June 5, 1956) is an American smooth jazz saxophonist, composer, and record producer. His 1986 album ''Duotones'' brought him commercial success. Kenny G is one of the List of best-selling music artists, best-selli ...
do so. In two episodes–" An Elephant Makes Love to a Pig" and " Jakovasaurs"–Garrison was implied to have practiced bestiality with Cartman's pig and a pigeon, respectively. Garrison is characterized as highly inept as a teacher, regularly introducing dubious curricula, such as showing ''
Barnaby Jones ''Barnaby Jones'' is an American detective fiction, detective television series starring Buddy Ebsen as a formerly retired investigator and Lee Meriwether as his widowed daughter-in-law. They run a private detective firm in Los Angeles, Califor ...
'' videos to the class for eight days, asking the class "why
Chubby Checker Chubby Checker (born Ernest Evans; October 3, 1941) is an American singer and dancer. He is widely known for popularizing many dance styles, including the Twist, with his 1960 hit cover of Hank Ballard & The Midnighters' R&B song " The Twis ...
left the
Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...
in 1972" or teaching the students how to tell the difference between a
prostitute Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...
and a
police officer A police officer (also called policeman or policewoman, cop, officer or constable) is a Warrant (law), warranted law employee of a police, police force. In most countries, ''police officer'' is a generic term not specifying a particular rank. ...
. On the other hand, he will occasionally teach the children advanced subjects such as theories on
evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...
,
Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Dzhugashvili; 5 March 1953) was a Soviet politician and revolutionary who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin, his death in 1953. He held power as General Secret ...
, and
communism Communism () is a political sociology, sociopolitical, political philosophy, philosophical, and economic ideology, economic ideology within the history of socialism, socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a ...
. Despite his cynicism, he appears to genuinely enjoy his job, falling into a depression when he is fired or is suspended from teaching. He also carries a gun and badge with him in class at all times, despite being told the teachers do not carry guns. Garrison did not have a known given name until the episode " Cherokee Hair Tampons". In that episode, his full name is Ethan P. Garrison. In "
The Entity ''The Entity'' is a 1982 American supernatural horror film directed by Sidney J. Furie, and starring Barbara Hershey, Ron Silver, David Labiosa, Maggie Blye, Jacqueline Brookes, and Alex Rocco. The film follows a single mother in Los Angel ...
", his given name is changed to Herbert. During Garrison's presidency, he is generally not referred to by name at all, with characters only referring to him as "The President".


As Janet Garrison

In the season nine premiere, " Mr. Garrison's Fancy New Vagina", Garrison
comes out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...
as a
trans woman A trans woman or transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity and may experience gender dysphoria (distress brought upon by the discrepancy between a person's gender identity and their ...
and decides to undergo a
vaginoplasty Vaginoplasty is any surgical procedure that results in the construction or reconstruction of the vagina. It is a type of genitoplasty. Pelvic organ prolapse is often treated with one or more surgeries to repair the vagina. Sometimes a vaginoplas ...
and
breast augmentation In medicine, breast augmentation and augmentation mammoplasty are terms that describe a cosmetic surgery procedure that uses either a Breast implant, breast implant or a fat-graft to realise a mammoplasty to increase the size, change the shape ...
. In the episode "
D-Yikes! "D-Yikes!" is the sixth episode of the eleventh season and the 159th overall episode of the American animated sitcom ''South Park''. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on April 11, 2007. In the episode, frustrated with men, ...
", it is revealed that she renamed herself Janet. Garrison frequently asserts her
femininity Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...
, including through
misandry Misandry () is the hatred of or prejudice against men or boys. Earliest recorded use: 1885. "No man whom she cared for had ever proposed to marry her. She could not account for it, and it was a growing source of bitterness, of misogyny as wel ...
and open proclamations of her sexuality. The transition causes her relationship with Mr. Slave to end, as the latter had not been consulted before the operation. Garrison also realizes that she has had no
menstrual periods The menstrual cycle is a series of natural changes in hormone production and the structures of the uterus and ovaries of the female reproductive system that makes pregnancy possible. The ovarian cycle controls the production and release of egg ...
after the operation, leading her to believe that she is pregnant. Garrison attempts to abort before she is told that her procedure does not result in the creation of
reproductive organs A sex organ, also known as a reproductive organ, is a part of an organism that is involved in sexual reproduction. Sex organs constitute the primary sex characteristics of an organism. Sex organs are responsible for producing and transporting ...
. In the episode "
Follow That Egg! "Follow That Egg!" is the tenth episode in the ninth season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 135th overall episode, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 2, 2005. In the episode, ...
", she attempts to prevent
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
from becoming legal after finding out that Mr. Slave is engaged to Big Gay Al. In the episode "
Go God Go "Go God Go" is the twelfth episode in the tenth season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 151st episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on November 1, 2006. The epis ...
", Garrison is ordered by the school district to teach
evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...
. Due to her personal aversion to the concept, she deliberately underperforms and is subsequently replaced by
Richard Dawkins Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
. Dawkins becomes attracted to Garrison, and they begin dating. Dawkins converts Garrison to atheism, and they subsequently decide to eradicate all religion from the world, leading to a future where the global populace embraces atheism and ignores logic, causing wars about the answer to "the Great Question". In the following episode, " Go God Go XII",
Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...
, having been cryonically frozen 500 years earlier, contacts Garrison's home from the future. Dawkins answers the phone and learns from Cartman about Garrison's previous life. Repulsed, Dawkins hastily ends his relationship with Garrison. The episode reveals that Garrison was the motivation that convinced Dawkins to teach atheism to the world, and as their relationship ended, the future changed once more. In the episode " D-Yikes", Mrs. Garrison starts to have
lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...
relationships. After an unnamed boyfriend abandons her, Garrison meets Allison, a lesbian who becomes quickly attracted to the former. Unaware of Allison's sexual orientation or growing affection, Garrison unwittingly joins her at a lesbian bar. After Garrison learns the truth, she is initially shocked but quickly returns Allison's feelings, and the two begin to date. As a result, Garrison begins openly identifying as a lesbian.


Detransition

In the episode " Eek, a Penis!", Garrison becomes disillusioned with living as a woman and wants to
detransition Detransition is the cessation or reversal of a transgender identification or of gender transition, temporarily or permanently, through social, legal, and/or medical means. The term is distinct from the concept of 'regret', and the decision may ...
. After hearing about genetic engineering being used to grow human body parts on mice, she pays for a procedure to grow a penis on a mouse. After Garrison spends most of the episode chasing the runaway mouse, it returns to Garrison and the sex change operation proves successful. After his detransition between seasons 12 through 18, Garrison's behavior was shown to be less eccentric than before, with significantly fewer acts of deviant sexual behavior, outrageous outbursts, racism, or psychotic episodes. His sexual identity was left ambiguous, being shown a Republican despite his ever-changing sexual and gender identities in " About Last Night...", being absent from "Gays against faggots" in " The F Word". In "
200 Year 200 ( CC) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Victorinus (or, less frequently, year 953 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 200 for this y ...
", he at first assists Stan, Kyle and Cartman in angering Tom Cruise unintentionally, but also later is consulted by Cartman regarding the events of "
Cartman's Mom Is Still a Dirty Slut "Cartman's Mom Is Still a Dirty Slut" is the second episode of the second season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 15th episode of the series overall, it premiered on Comedy Central in the United States on April 2 ...
", after Mitch Connor tells Cartman that the allegations Ms. Cartman was intersex and Cartman's father are a lie – while Garrison tries to steer Cartman away, Cartman convinces him to bring out Mr. Hat, and Mr. Hat confesses the declaration of Ms. Cartman being his father (and intersex) was fake and that Eric Cartman's real father was in the room. The episode ends with an abrupt cliffhanger while Garrison is about to reveal the identity of Cartman's father.


Presidential campaign, presidency and post-presidency

During the nineteenth season, following Principal Victoria's replacement with PC Principal, Garrison becomes frustrated with a recent influx of illegal Canadian immigrants. He begins denigrating the immigrants and is consequently dismissed from his teaching job. He begins a political campaign on promises to get rid of the immigrants and build a wall, parodying
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
's then-current
presidential campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referen ...
. After discovering Canada has already built a wall, Garrison goes over
Niagara Falls Niagara Falls is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York (s ...
to Canada and rapes the Canadian President—a caricature of Trump—to death. Convinced that his policies work, Garrison continues his campaign with
Caitlyn Jenner Caitlyn Marie Jenner (born William Bruce Jenner, October 28, 1949), formerly known as Bruce Jenner, is an American media personality and retired Olympic gold medal-winning decathlete. Jenner played college football for the Graceland Yell ...
as his running mate. The episode "
Sponsored Content Native advertising, also called sponsored content, partner content, and branded journalism, is a type of paid advertising that appears in the style and format of the content near the advertisement's placement. It manifests as a post, image, vide ...
" features Principal Victoria convincing Garrison to return to South Park. Parker and Stone had expected Trump's campaign to end before the 2016 election. They opined that a direct portrayal of Trump would be dated if the campaign ended quickly, and felt it would be more appropriate to use one of their characters in his role, having already decided Garrison would come into conflict with the new principal. In the following seasons, Garrison receives the Republican Party nomination and continues his campaign. He realizes that he will be incapable of actually performing his duties as the president if he is elected, and tries to sabotage his own campaign, even outright telling people to vote for
Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
instead of him. While his attempts are initially unsuccessful, he eventually manages to lower his poll numbers by making inflammatory comments about women. As he attempts to tell his supporters that the election is rigged against him, they realize that he had never intended to actually make it as far as he did and furiously pursue him. Seeking refuge in a support group run by Randy Marsh, Garrison learns that people want him to become president because
J. J. Abrams Jeffrey Jacob Abrams (born June 27, 1966) is an American filmmaker and composer. He is best known for his works in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. Abrams wrote and produced films such as '' Regarding Henry'' (1991), '' Forever ...
brainwashed people into liking '' Star Wars: The Force Awakens'' using Member Berries. After failing to destroy the Member Berries, Garrison makes a speech urging Americans to vote for Clinton in protest of the new film. Despite his efforts, Garrison is elected president and brainwashed by Jenner, who herself was brainwashed by the Member Berries. Upon winning the election, he uses his newfound power to force people with whom he has had altercations to perform fellatio on him. Garrison plays a role in the season twenty finale by helping to defeat the season's other antagonists while remaining in power. Parker and Stone expected Clinton to win the election, and revealed that they waited for the election to end to focus on other storylines, intending for a humbled Garrison to return to teaching. Garrison was also intended to play a role in resolving the conflict between the male and female students at the school classroom that had developed over the course of the season, taking responsibility for causing their behavior. Following Trump's win, Parker and Stone were consequently forced to rewrite the season's final episodes, and felt that they could not resolve some of the season's storylines in a satisfying way as a result. The twenty-first season sees a desperate Garrison returning to South Park after launching a nuclear strike against Canada in " Super Hard PCness". Garrison was absent in all but one episode of the following season, appearing in a cameo in the season finale, "
Bike Parade "Bike Parade" is the tenth and final episode of the twenty-second season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 297th overall episode of the series, it premiered on Comedy Central in the United States on December 12, 201 ...
". Garrison reappears in " The Pandemic Special" as an antagonist who wants to prolong the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, as the virus is also killing Mexicans. At the end of the episode, Garrison kills the
pangolin Pangolins, sometimes known as scaly anteaters, are mammals of the order Pholidota (). The one extant family, the Manidae, has three genera: '' Manis'', '' Phataginus'', and '' Smutsia''. ''Manis'' comprises four species found in Asia, while ' ...
being researched in for vaccine development with a flamethrower, along with the scientist holding the pangolin. In " South ParQ Vaccination Special", Garrison returns to South Park after losing the 2020 election to return to teaching, but is opposed by everyone except the
QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...
-adhering White family. Garrison pleads to the elites, who are toying with him and Bob White, to return his life to normal; he later regains the townspeople's respect after securing
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...
vaccines for everyone with the elites' help. In the twenty-fifth season, Mr. Garrison started dating a man named Rick in the episode " Pajama Day". Garrison's relationship with Rick is tested in the season twenty-six finale "
Spring Break Spring break is a vacation period at universities and schools that includes the Easter holiday, and takes place in early Northern Hemisphere spring. Introduced in the U.S. during the 1930s, spring break has been observed in Europe since t ...
" when Garrison is pressured by his supporters to run for president again in
2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
. Garrison is forced to choose between his relationship with Rick and personal gain, ultimately choosing the former. Garrison returns to Rick, and the two reconcile. Immediately there is a repeat of the Capital Attack in Washington DC, with actual
live action Live action is a form of cinematography or videography that uses photography instead of animation. Some works combine live action with animation to create a live-action animated feature film. Live action is used to define film, video games o ...
footage, but it's a celebration from his supporters that Garrison and Rick decided to stay together, rather than a shift in power.


Mr. Hat

Mr. Hat initially appears to be simply a puppet used by Mr. Garrison as a teaching aid. However, in some episodes, Mr. Hat is able to perform activities that would not have been possible if he were merely a puppet. In the show, it is not entirely clear how much autonomy Mr. Hat and Mr. Garrison have from each other. In the episode "
Chef Aid "Chef Aid" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 27th episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 7, 1998. The epi ...
", Mr. Hat is able to drive a car through a prison wall to rescue Mr. Garrison and
Chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...
, to which Chef remarks, "How the hell did he reach the gas pedal?". Other episodes also portray Mr. Hat as somewhat autonomous. In one episode, Mr. Hat is able to move his eyes and blink towards Mr. Garrison and
Brett Favre Brett Lorenzo Favre ( ; born October 10, 1969) is an American former professional American football, football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 20 seasons, primarily with the Green Bay Packers. Favre had 321 cons ...
, and in " Worldwide Recorder Concert", Mr. Hat beats up Mr. Mackey. In the ''South Park'' video game, Mr. Hat owns and runs a robot factory by himself. In '' South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut'',
Satan Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...
picks up Mr. Hat as a companion to replace Saddam Hussein. Satan speaks Mr. Hat's lines in a voice very similar to Mr. Garrison's. Mr. Hat is portrayed as racist, as seen in "
Chef Goes Nanners "Chef Goes Nanners" is the seventh episode of the South Park season 4, fourth season of the animated television series ''South Park'', and the 55th episode of the series overall. It is eighth in production order. "Chef Goes Nanners" originally ...
", where he is a member of the South Park branch of the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
. Mr. Hat argues with Mr. Garrison and seemingly disappears to attend a meeting without him. Mr. Hat also appears to be somewhat psychotic. In "
Weight Gain 4000 "Weight Gain 4000" is the third episode of the South Park season 1, first season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. It first aired on Comedy Central in the United States on August 27, 1997. In the episode, the residents o ...
", furious at
Kathie Lee Gifford Kathryn Lee Gifford (Given name, née Epstein; born August 16, 1953) is an American television presenter, singer, songwriter, actress, and author. From 1985 to 2000, she and Regis Philbin hosted the talk show ''Live with Kelly and Mark, Live! wi ...
for a talent show he and Mr. Garrison had lost years ago, Mr. Hat convinces Mr. Garrison to kill her, which he attempts to do. It is unclear in the show if Mr. Hat is independent or if Mr. Garrison's own psychosis is projected to his puppet. In " Summer Sucks", during a fictional crossover psychotherapy session with
Dr. Katz ''Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Jonathan Katz and Tom Snyder for Comedy Central. It originally ran from May 28, 1995, to February 13, 2002. The series starred the voice talents of Jonathan Kat ...
(from another
Comedy Central Comedy Central is an American Cable television in the United States, cable television channel, channel owned by Paramount Global through its Paramount Media Networks, network division's Paramount Media Networks#MTV Entertainment Group, MTV Ente ...
series), Katz suggests that Mr. Hat is a personification of Mr. Garrison's "gay side". Garrison rejects this, and Katz is unable to make a counterpoint because he is killed shortly afterward by a gigantic novelty firework. Despite this suggestion, Mr. Garrison continues to use Mr. Hat even after coming out as gay. Mr. Hat is permanently abandoned in favor of Mr. Slave when Mr. Garrison begins teaching fourth grade. Parker and Stone have said that the removal of Mr. Hat was symbolic of the show abandoning its original style as a surreal comedy in favor of its current format of satirizing real-life issues and events. Mr. Hat was not seen again until the climax of the episode "
200 Year 200 ( CC) was a leap year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Severus and Victorinus (or, less frequently, year 953 ''Ab urbe condita''). The denomination 200 for this y ...
", when
Eric Cartman Eric Theodore Cartman, commonly referred to as just Cartman, is a fictional character in the adult animated sitcom ''South Park'', created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone. He is voiced by Parker, and is one of the series' four main characters, ...
demands to speak with him, at which point Mr. Garrison produces Mr. Hat from a dresser drawer, and despite his initial reluctance, Garrison again seems unable to control Mr. Hat, and again addresses him separately. At the conclusion of the storyline, Mr. Hat is again discarded, subsequently appearing briefly in the game '' South Park: The Stick of Truth'' and the 2021 special '' South ParQ Vaccination Special''.


Mr. Twig

Starting in the episode " Summer Sucks", Mr. Garrison temporarily replaces Mr. Hat with Mr. Twig, who consists of a
twig A twig is a thin, often short, branch of a tree or Bush (plant), bush. The buds on the twig are an important diagnostic characteristic, as are the abscission scars where the leaves have fallen away. The color, texture, and patterning of the t ...
wearing a purple shirt with a
pink triangle A pink triangle is a symbol for the LGBT community. Initially intended as a badge of shame, it was later reappropriated as a positive symbol of self-identity. It originated in Nazi Germany in the 1930s and 1940s as one of the Nazi concentratio ...
symbol. His voice is identical to Mr. Hat's until his final scene in "
Chef Aid "Chef Aid" is the fourteenth episode of the second season of the American animated television series ''South Park''. The 27th episode of the series overall, it originally aired on Comedy Central in the United States on October 7, 1998. The epi ...
", where he speaks with a French accent. Mr. Twig is poorly received by the children in Garrison's third grade class, who repeatedly call for the return of Mr. Hat and suggest that Mr. Twig would be better used as a coat rack, to which Garrison takes offense. Eventually, Mr. Hat returns in "Chef Aid", heralding the fact by some psychopathic attacks on Mr. Twig. Though Garrison constantly assures himself that Mr. Twig is a better choice than Mr. Hat, he comes to terms with his attachment to Mr. Hat at the end of the episode upon being broken out of jail by him. Garrison reunites with Mr. Hat after Mr. Twig advises him to follow his heart.


See also

*
South Park (Park County, Colorado) South Park is a grassland flat within the basin formed by the Rocky Mountains' Mosquito and Rampart Mountain Ranges within central Colorado. This high valley ranges in elevation from approximately 9,000 to 10,000 ft (3,000 m). It encom ...
*
South Park City South Park City is an open-air museum located at the west end of Front Street in the town of Fairplay in Park County, Colorado. The museum is a historic reconstruction of a mining town from the days of the Colorado Gold Rush and the later Col ...


References


External links

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